Deep in space, Contraxia.
Above the icy planet, the Ravagers' main fleet had gathered.
The atmosphere was solemn, tinged with sorrow.
News of Yondu Udonta's "heroic death"—
had spread across the universe through the Nova Corps' "official" report,
Quill's tearful "personal page,"
and Rocket's meticulously fabricated, outrageously detailed "battlefield record."
A massive holographic projection floated at the center of the fleet.
It displayed Yondu's crooked grin, now stamped with the label "Hero."
Stakar Ogord, one of the Ravagers' top leaders, stood quietly on the bridge, gazing at the projection.
His resolute face carried a trace of wistfulness.
He remembered the days they had fought side by side, then thought of their later falling-out...
Until it all became a long sigh.
No matter how many grudges they had held in the past, it had ended in such a "glorious" fashion.
It was, at least, a fitting end to an old Ravager's career.
"To Yondu Udonta!"
Stakar raised his glass, his voice carrying across every warship through the comm channels.
"To Yondu!!!"
Thousands of Ravagers raised their glasses in response, their voices deep and powerful.
The next moment,
countless specially made fireworks, capable of burning brilliantly in the vacuum of space, launched from the warships.
They burst across the black canvas of the universe in a dazzling sea of light.
—the Ravagers' highest tribute.
Illuminating their fallen brother's final journey toward the sea of stars.
The spectacle was immense, the sentiment sincere.
It was deeply moving.
Just as the fireworks shone at their brightest and everyone was immersed in the tragic atmosphere—
a small new-model ship with an exceptionally flashy paint job
silently slipped into the edge of the fleet like a ghost.
It docked precisely beside the airlock of Stakar's flagship.
The hatch opened.
A blue figure wearing a battered Ravager